Matthew Field TikTok has been fined €345m (£296m) by European regulators for failing to protect children’s privacy and putting them at risk of “online exploitation or grooming” A TikTok spokesman...
Matthew Field
TikTok has been fined €345m (£296m) by European regulators for failing to protect children’s privacy and putting them at risk of “online exploitation or grooming”
The Irish Data Protection Commission, the data watchdog responsible for TikTok under the bloc’s rules, found the social media network had left children’s accounts exposed to the public by default, rather than implementing stricter privacy settings for younger users.
When signing up, all TikTok users, including those under the age of 16, were able to skip an option that would have made their account more secure. Instead, by default, their account would be broadcast “to a global audience of millions”.
The fine is TikTok’s largest ever financial penalty and its first under European data rules.
A TikTok spokesman said: “We respectfully disagree with the decision, particularly the level of the fine imposed”
TikTok, which is owned by the Chinese company Bytedance, said changes had been made to the app to improve childrens’ privacy prior to the investigation. All accounts used by under 16s have been set to private by default since January 2021.
The video sharing app has been under pressure over its use of user data and been accused by US officials of posing a security risk, something TikTok denies.
The app is also facing an ongoing investigation by Ireland’s privacy watchdog that it allowed European data to be transferred to China in violation of the bloc’s data regulations.
Europe has further tightened up its rules on Big Tech giants, announcing its new Digital Services Act which adds further responsibilities to the world’s largest technology companies, including TikTok.
The DPC in Ireland has a disproportionate amount of responsibility in the EU for data protection, thanks to how we've chosen to structure our economy attracting all the tech giants. It's been,...
The DPC in Ireland has a disproportionate amount of responsibility in the EU for data protection, thanks to how we've chosen to structure our economy attracting all the tech giants. It's been, rightly, I think, criticised for not adequately shouldering that responsibility. Which is to say I'm glad to see them handing out a stringent punishment to a big tech company.
My only issue with services like Nebula (full disclosure, it's been a bit since I've last checked) is a severe lack of silly content. One of the reasons I love YouTube is the ability to watch...
My only issue with services like Nebula (full disclosure, it's been a bit since I've last checked) is a severe lack of silly content. One of the reasons I love YouTube is the ability to watch insightful commentary channels like Wendigoon followed immediately by dumb fun content like Sora the Troll. Whereas on Nebula, it's all educational, all the time. Which gets a bit stale after a while.
It’s kind of expensive to provide these services. I actually am not confident it can be done using only non-data-mining advertising and no up front fees.
It’s kind of expensive to provide these services. I actually am not confident it can be done using only non-data-mining advertising and no up front fees.
Matthew Field
TikTok has been fined €345m (£296m) by European regulators for failing to protect children’s privacy and putting them at risk of “online exploitation or grooming”
A TikTok spokesman said: “We respectfully disagree with the decision, particularly the level of the fine imposed”
The DPC in Ireland has a disproportionate amount of responsibility in the EU for data protection, thanks to how we've chosen to structure our economy attracting all the tech giants. It's been, rightly, I think, criticised for not adequately shouldering that responsibility. Which is to say I'm glad to see them handing out a stringent punishment to a big tech company.
How is it so hard to just do a subscription only Youtube/TikTok thtats not insanely abusive and ok for videos?
My only issue with services like Nebula (full disclosure, it's been a bit since I've last checked) is a severe lack of silly content. One of the reasons I love YouTube is the ability to watch insightful commentary channels like Wendigoon followed immediately by dumb fun content like Sora the Troll. Whereas on Nebula, it's all educational, all the time. Which gets a bit stale after a while.
It’s kind of expensive to provide these services. I actually am not confident it can be done using only non-data-mining advertising and no up front fees.